Trump Administration Says It Will Take Years To Reunite Separated Families

Asylum seeking migrant families from Central American walk through a field to the main road after they crossed the Rio Grande river into the U.S. from Mexico in Penitas, Texas, March 31, 2019 (REUTERS/Adrees Latif).

In a recent court filing, US officials said that it may take two years to identify and reunite thousands of immigrant families separated at the US-Mexico border. The two year figure is the result of complexities associated with sifting through records, conducting manual reviews, and data analysis.

Families were separated immediately when then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions launched the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy exactly a year ago. President Donald Trump struck down the measure through an executive order amid mounting political pressure and outrage from public opinion during the summer of 2018. Despite Trump’s new directive, 2,300 children were already separated from their families by last spring, and federal agents said that…

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